Sunday, June 17th, 2012
In this year of the Diamond Jubilee, Cartier was pleased to sponsor the prestigious high-goal Queen’s Cup. Some of the biggest names in the sport of polo were in action yesterday on the Queen’s Ground at Guards Polo Club, Windsor Great Park in a bid to win the Cartier Queen’s Cup 2012.
One of the most prestigious and renowned events of the British sporting calendar it was watched by HM The Queen, HRH Prince Philip, Arnaud M. Bamberger, Executive Chairman Cartier Ltd and François Le Troquer, Managing Director Cartier Ltd alongside a strong crowd of polo aficionados. It featured a thrilling contest for the Queen’s Cup between Team Dubai and Team Ayala; Dubai defeated Ayala in one of the closest finals in the 52-year history of this great highgoal polo tournament with the final score of 12-11.
This is the fifth time that Albwardy’s Dubai team has won this cup. This victory also saw Dubai’s Cambiaso, considered by many to be the best player in the world, win his eighth Queen’s Cup winners’ prize and be named ‘Most Valuable Player’. It was Ayala’s Gonzalito Pieres though who received the ‘Cartier Best Playing Pony Award’ for Centimetre. The opportunity to be a part of the Queen’s Cup cements Cartier’s commitment to the sport itself. After 27 years’ support of International Day at the Club, Cartier announced last year that it was transferring its sponsorship to this earlier, high-goal fixture in June to support a more tournament-based event. With 16 teams entering this most prestigious of tournaments, including five of the greatest exponents of the sport in the world, all expectations were exceeded. Although Cartier has sponsored the Queen’s Cup before, as a one-off in 2006, this event is the first of a new sponsorship agreement and we are very proud to be a part of this internationally respected tournament. To mirror the impressive talent on the field, Cartier greeted guests from the worlds of literature, stage, screen, sport and society into the Cartier enclosure, treating them to a glamorous reception, serving Cartier champagne and a lunch created by Mosimann’s.
Guests of Note:
Ms Lorraine Ashbourne Ms Jennie Bond Mr Douglas Booth
Miss Zoe Boyle Mr Kenneth Branagh Miss Olympia Campbell
Miss Gemma Chan Mr Oliver Coleman Mr Ioan Gruffudd
Mr Anthony Head Miss Daisy Head Mr Tom Hughes
Mr Theo Hutchcraft Miss Vanessa Kirby Miss Ophelia Lovibond
Miss Katie Melua Dr Edwin Moses Mrs Eduardo Novillo Astrada
Mr Mike Rutherford Miss Kaya Scodalerio Mr Andie Serkis
Mr Jack Whitehall Lady Frederick Windsor Ms Dita von Teese
Guests started with dressed Dorset crab; followed by roasted fillet of Angus beef, Jersey royals, seasonal vegetables, garden herbs and horseradish Cream and finished on a sweet note with summer berry jelly and Madagascan vanilla ice cream. The enclosure was transformed into a quintessentially ‘English Garden’ with floral creations by John Carter, from exquisite urns full of sumptuous, large green hydrangeas to tables filled with pink, purple and red flowers, in keeping with the summer season. This sold-out day, which attracted a crowd of some 5,000 people, concluded with a unique display on the Queen’s Ground. The Royal Cavalry of Oman put on a magnificent display of equine skill, featuring some 70 magnificent Arab horses as well a couple of flag-bearing Shires too. Cartier very much looks forward to the Cartier Queen’s Cup 2013.